Battery terminal connecter



'Patentecl Feb. 16, 1932 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE cam. r. mom, or CHICAGO, rumors, assrenoa 'ro memo L. ramsn, or

cmeaeo, rumors BATTERY TERMHQ'AL CONNECTIB Application filed June 11,

My invention relates to clamps adapted for use in connection with battery terminal connectors.

In accordance with my invention I cast the ends of a split clamping ring about portions of a clamping bolt which portions have formations, inclusive of threads, of such nature that the bolt is inseparable from the ring and that when the bolt is rotated in one direction the ring is spread, and when rotated in the other direction the ring is contracted.

The invention will be more fully explained in connection with the accompanyin drawings showing the preferred form of clamp used in the construction of a battery terminal connecter, Fig. 1 being a sectional view of the connecter; Fig. 2 1s a side view of the connecter of Fig. 1, but showing it clamped upon a battery terminal; and Fig. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of the preferred form of bolt.

Referring now in detail to the drawings, the numeral 5 indicates a connecting cable which is usually constructed of copper wire or copper strands and is covered with the insulating coating 6. My im roved connecter includes the body portion preferably of lead or similar suitable acid resisting metal that will not corrode under the influence of the fumes of the battery acid. The end 8 of the cable 5 may be moulded or otherwise secured in a recess 9 provided in the free end of the body 7. The body 7 as shown is provided with the annular portion 10 which is adapted to extend around a battery post such as 11 shown in Fig. 2 and which has the free end portion 12 thereof extending back over the main portion of the body 7 which is cut away as at 13 to permit the end 12 to move toward or away from the main body portion and decrease or increase the size of the aperture 14 in the annular portion 10.

It will be noted from Fig. 2 that this aperture 14 tapers inwardly from the upperand lower faces 15 and 16 of the annular ortion 10 being somewhat larger at the ace 16 than at the face 15 and is provided with the substantially cylindrical portion 17 intermediate the two tapered portions. By making the tapered portion adjacent the face 16 1928. Serial No. 284,450.

slightly larger than the tapered portion adjacent the face 15, the terminal may be made to fit posts of slightly difi'erent diameters by simply turnin the connecter over. a

The adjusting member 18 by means of whlch the connecter is clamped on the battery post is a bolt having the screw threads 19 thereon engaging the interior screw threads 20 provided in an aperture in the end 12 of the connecter. This bolt has the head 21 thereon and the shank portion thereof extends through the main body portion as at 22. The bolt 18 serves the dual function not only of drawing the clamp down upon the battery post by rotation of the bolt in one direction, but also of releasing the clamp from the battery portion by rotating the bolt in the opposite direction. This is accomplished by mounting the bolt rotatably and non-slidably within the body portion 7 which is done by providing the collars 23 and 24 on the bolt and corresponding annular recesses 25 and 26 in the portion 22 of the body 7 so that while the bolt 18 may rotate relative to the body 7 there can be no endwise movement of the bolt relative to the body.

I accomplish this mounting by an improved method which requires no additional fastening means for preventing sliding of the bolt relative to the body. This method consists primarily in casting the body 7 with the bolt 18 in position, that is, casting the body about the bolt 18 in the first instance rather than providing a hole through the body and subsequently inserting the bolt.

eretofore, so far as I am aware, it has been the practice to cast these terminal connecters in a mold providing apertures through the portions 22 and 12 and subsequently threading the portion 12 to receive the threaded end of the bolt 18. I found, however, that there is sufficient contracting of the metals as they cool after being cast to permit the casting of the lead body 7 about the bolt 18 after the bolt 18 has been threaded and the collars 23 and 24 provided thereon so that the bolt may be caused to turn relative to the body when cast in this fashion.

Thus, after the connecter has been cast all that is necessary to make the adjusting bolt perform its function is to clamp the connecter in a vise or other suitable molding device and by the use of a wrench to turn the bolt a few times relative to the body when it becomes sufiiciently loose to permit it to perform its adjusting functions with the connecter. The interior threads on the portion 12 and the annular recesses 25 and 26 are by this method cast in the body 7 and the terminal requires no machine work to finish it.

For preventing corrosion of the exposed portions of the bolt 18 I preferably plate the same with lead prior to casting it into the connected body. This leaves the exposed portions of the bolt coated with lead after the connecter is cast and makes a substantially acid proof terminal clamp. Moreover, since the amount of contraction of the metals of the bolt 18 and the body 7 is quite small, a tight fit between them is assured by constructing the device in this manner.

From the above description of one form of embodiment of my invention it is thought that the construction and advantages of this device will be clear to those skilled in this art and having thus described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A battery terminal connecter comprising a split ring, a bolt, said ring having its ends cast about portions of the bolt, the bolt having threads on one of said portions intimately contacting with internal threads Within one end of the ring and having formations on the other of said portions embedded in the other end of the ring by casting and rotatably connected therewith. said bolt being retained in inseparable relation with the ring and rotatable in one direction to spread the ring and rotatable in the other direction to contract the ring, the formations coacting with one end of the ring to cause the threads to move the other end of the ring.

2. A battery terminal connecter comprising a split ring, a bolt, said ring having its ends cast about portions of the bolt, the bolt having threads on one of said portions intimately contacting with internal threads within one end of the ring and having circumferentially extending ribs on the other of said portions embedded in the other end of the ring by casting, said bolt being retained in inseparable relation with the ring and rotatable in one direction to. spread the ring and rotatable in the other direction to contract the ring, the ribs rotatably connected with one end of the ring to cause the thread to move the other end of the ring.

3. A battery terminal connecter comprismg a cast member including a split ring, a. unitary bolt, said bolt being provided with formations, said ring having its ends cast about the formations of the bolt whereby said formations are embedded in and intimately 

